Anne Milton - Guildford MP (and Dipstick)

The most recent edition of the Surrey Advertiser reports the following:

A major shake-up of the health service across the South East has been agreed which will see services such as GP surgeries delivered by one organisation in Surrey... the number of primary care trusts (PCTs) - the organisations which run GP surgeries, community hospitals and commission care from acute hospitals - will be reduced nationally from 303 to 152. Five PCTs in Surrey - North Surrey, East Surrey, Surrey Heath & Woking, Guildford & Waverly and East Elmbridge & Mid Surrey- will amalgamate to form one county-wide trust.

OK, we're talking health here, so Anne "I'm a nurse!" Milton clearly has the inside track... and certainly must know something we don't when she makes a rare out-of-step move like this:

Leader of Conservative run Surrey County Council Nick Skellett has welcomed the creation of one PCT.... However, Guildford's Tory MP Anne Milton has dubbed the changes to PCTs as "disruptive, destabilising and making patient care suffer".

Disruptive, destabilising... and making patient health care suffer. I suspect there's a reason that Amme's objections are prioritised in this way, and that the reason is hidden in the following list:

Saroj Auplish - Director of Public Health, North Surrey PCT
Graham Henderson - Director of Public Health, East Surrey PCT
Judi Linney - Director of Public Health, Surrey Heath & Woking PCT
Ruth Milton - Director of Public Health, Guildford & Waverly PCT
Jonathan Hildebrand - Director of Public Health, East Elmbridge & Mid Surrey PCT

(I bet you're looking at the name 'Ruth Milton' right now and screaming; "Gotcha!". Heh. Sorry to tease... but we're not there yet. Ruth Milton is not related to Anne Milton. At all.)

When the five PCTs amalgamate to form one county-wide trust, you can be sure that they will not be needing five Directors of Public Health.

Also, the new Director of Public Health - whoever that may turn out to be - is most likely to be based at Woking. (Out of all the current PCT offices, Woking has the most office space and the best communications; it's not centrally-located, but it's sure to be any bean-counter's primary choice.)

This is sure to worry one Director of Public Health in particular... Dr Graham Henderson.

Dr Graham Henderson is one of the few regional Directors without a secondary role to fall back on (many of the people on this list have a dual role such as 'Director of Public Health and Medical Director') and even if he is awarded the new central position of Director of Public Health for Surrey, Dr Henderson's commute will switch from Reigate to Earlswood (about 2 miles) to Reigate to Woking (about 20 miles).

As it turns out, Dr Graham Henderson's wife already has to drive approximately 20 miles to her office and/or the occasional event... in Guildford.

Yes, folks... we're finally there:

Dr Graham Henderson, Director of Public Health for the East Surrey PCT, is the husband of Anne Milton, Guildford MP.

(Sidebar: Currently, the only online record that exists that shows that these two people are connected by marriage is on this weblog. Please leave any tips in the jar.)

Now, why do you think Anne Milton would disagree with her Conservative colleague so boldly by describing the upcoming changes to PCTs as "disruptive, destabilising and making patient care suffer"....?

Could it be because of a clear conflict of interest?

Anne herself must surely recognise this. Why else would she declare a nameless husband on an unnamed trust to the House during this debate?

Sadly, that's as far as Anne's transparency goes. Her husband's role and its possible impact on her participation in any debate on the subject of Surrey-based PCTs is not listed in her Register of Members' Interests and - while the relevant letter is not included in the report - there appears to be no record of her making any such declaration when she recently gave evidence to the Surrey Health Scrutiny Committee (PDF).

When it comes to any comment or consultation on upcoming changes to primary care trusts, Anne Milton should keep her mouth shut... and if she can't keep her mouth shut, then the first words that dribble from her lips should be "While my husband's future income and convenience depends greatly on maintaining the status quo, I do feel that I should say this..."

That way, when she describes the impending PCT changes as "disruptive, destabilising and making patient care suffer", people will know that she means disruptive for her husband and destabilising to her routine... and that any mention of patient care is a mere afterthought.

Labels: 'local', conflict of interest

The latest issue of the Surrey Advertiser reports that David Cameron rolled into town this week "to test-drive an array of eco-friendly cars" at Dunsfold Park.

It also informs us that MPs Jeremy Hunt and Anne Milton were rather shy about what they drive... they both chose to hide their cars behind an aircraft hangar!

Jeremy - to his credit - reacted to that hot feeling on the back of his neck and made a pledge to upgrade to a hybrid alternative.

Anne had no such feeling (insert 'cold-blooded reptile' joke here) and made no such pledge... and instead chose to dodge the issue. (Surprise, surprise, surprise!)

So... given that Amme has to drive all the way from Reigate (on those days when she can be bothered to turn up in Guildford at all) I think that the electorate has a right to know what model car she drives... don't you?

PS - I really must include this picture from the event. It speaks for itself...

UPDATE - Independent - Cameron's image as green leader goes up in smoke: David Cameron's campaign for the green vote suffered a setback when it emerged that he is followed by his official car when he cycles to work. Mr Cameron has been regularly photographed cycling the five miles from his west London home to Westminster. In fact, he is often followed by his Lexus car, whose driver picks up shoes, clothes and documents the Tory leader cannot carry on his bike.

Labels: 'local', david cameron, hypocrisy, publicity

Cheadle Liberal Democrats: The Liberal Democrats have today exposed a misleading campaign leaflet produced by Stephen Day's negative Conservative campaign. The Conservative leaflet highlights five people who all say that they will be voting or supporting Stephen Day. But the names of the five people do not feature on the local voting list.

Ten quid says they feature on the Tory payroll, though. (Ref: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)

Here's one from the flipside from yesterday's Independent: One leaflet, entitled "Shame on you Mr Hunter", highlights the fact that the Liberal Democrat candidate lives a few miles away in the neighbouring constituency. Tory posters are free from party branding and include the slogan "living here" - a gibe at Mr Hunter, who complained: "The Conservatives have run a nasty and personal campaign."

As they did here. While weeping ever-so-convincingly over 'personal attacks' from this weblog.

On the small matter of locale, one might be tempted to quote Anne Milton, who was once heard to say; "It's hardly Tierra del Fuego, now is it?"

Or perhaps one could consider the words of Sue Doughty: Mrs Doughty said of Mrs Milton: "She keeps saying she lives in Guildford. She has a one-bedroom flat in Guildford. She also has a family of four with a very highly paid husband. We don't believe that the family is squeezed into the one-bed flat." This column protested that it is quite unfair to blame Mrs Milton for declining to uproot her family before she has even won the seat. But Mrs Doughty was not to be mollified. "We've never had a Tory live in this constituency. They've always taken flats.

As I pointed out in my post about Anne Milton's cosy little flat: The address must be your current home address, not a business address. The address does not need to be in the constituency in which you intend to stand; it could be anywhere in the country.

So she could have used her Reigate address (say it with me again; "It's hardly Tierra del Fuego, now is it?") but she didn't. Why? Because she campaigned posing as a local. More than that, actually... she did her very best to give the impression that she was the local MP.

(SIDEBAR: Did Anne Milton use the Tierra del Fuego line again and again and again, or did she lift it from Damian Whitworth... and then use it again and again and again?)

Labels: 'local'

1. I can offer a very special and exclusive prize (to anyone who's a fan of my photoshopping) for the first photo of Anne Milton - our loving Matron - with her lips wrapped around a smoking fag.

2. Word reaches me that Anne has a nickname other than 'Dipstick'. It has been reported than the name 'Princess Pushy' has been attributed to her since She With The VSM (very small margin) was seen edging her way to the front of subsequent photo-ops. Ah, yes... eye on the prize. Patsy likes that in an MP, yes she does.

3. I wonder when Anne's 'residence' will come back on the market? Perhaps it's on the market or even taken already. No sense in continuing to live in a one-bedroom flat with a husband and three kids at home, now is there?

4. This groundless, needlessly personal and clearly biased post is dedicated to the many supporters of Anne Milton who finally had to guts to speak up (after the election) but still have not answered any pending questions beyond "Ha-ha, you lost!" and/or "Anne is a really nice person, why can't you accept that?"

Labels: 'local', hypocrisy, publicity

I call upon you to witness the latest pamphlet from Anne Milton, which clearly shows how very, very local she is (you can see the original pamphlet in PDF format here).

Why, all it takes is a glance to tell you that the other leading candidates are Outsiders:



Anne is no stranger to Surrey... and no stranger to hardship, either.

A reader pointed me in the direction of the property listed as her official place of residence on her application form. It's a one-bedroom flat in the north-east of Guildford.

That's one bedroom, folks. One bedroom to service Anne, her husband Graham, and the four griglets; Charles, David, Nicola and Andrew.



Now, Charles is 20 and studying, so he may not be staying there... but that's still two adults and three children under 18 getting by in one small flat.

It's a good thing that young Andrew is so fond of his Gameboy, as there's no back yard to speak of and a bulky Playstation and/or television would eat up valuable space required for the camp stove (that they no doubt huddle around for warmth as they heat their last can of cut-price beans).

Take a look at the sacrifices Anne Milton is prepared to make for you, people of Guildford. And never forget that she is very local.

Hell, if she used the technique above to show how un-local I am, she would need a much, much bigger map. True, I've lived here for 7 years and even own a hamster that has lived in Guildford longer than she has, but he and I have the luxury of a much larger living space.

(PS - I talked to a nice lady who lives across the street, and she told me that she had never seen Anne or even heard of her. But she also told me that people on this street "don't talk to each other much"... and you all know what that means, don't you? Yes, it means that Anne is doing her best to fit in.)

Labels: 'local'